Monday, October 28, 2013

What to eat in Chicago? There are two things: Italian beef and deep pan pizza.

If you ever watched the Chicago episode of Man vs Food, you'll know about Italian beef, thin shavings of beef in bread that's dunked in meat juices before serving. It's a dish that's said to have originated from Italian immigrants who worked in Chicago's meat packing district, who worked out a way to make use of the tougher cheaper cuts from work. Today it's still a specialty of Chicago, and rarely found outside of north-east Illinois, north-west Indiana and Indianapolis.

Al's #1 Italian Beef

There are debates about who first started selling the Italian beef sandwich, but Al's No. 1 Italian Beef was one of the earliest, opening in 1938. Just like Adam Richman, wehead to Al's where they slow roast 4.5kg sirloins for four hours, chill overnight and then slice super thinly and soak in the meat juices until serving.

Al's Big Beef US$7.70with sweet peppers

If you're new here - like we were - placing an order here comes with a barrage of bewildering options. "Peppers? Yes or no? Did you want them sweet, hot or both?" And here's the kicker. "Do you want it juicy, wet or soaked?"

Say whaaaaaat?

What we're talking about here is the signature of an Italian beef sandwich. It's not enough that the sliced beef has been soaking in meat juices, they also dunk your assembled sandwich in the meat juices too. How long you want it dipped - quick dunk (juicy), double dunk (wet) or dripping (soaked) - is up to you.

Italian beef US$7.70with hot and sweet peppers

Eating one of these juice-dripping bread rolls crammed with meat and peppers is no easy affair. In the Man vs Food episode, the owner teaches Adam the correct eating stance - that's leaning right into the counter with your legs at an angle so if you drop anything, there's a clear path to either the table or the floor. Happily, we score one of the few tables outside for more dignified eating.

But the big question. Does it taste like soggy bread? Yeah, kinda. Wet bread with meat juices. And a load of beef. I had the combo with sausage - a tasty addition.

On our first night in Chicago we headed to Gino's East for deep dish pizza only to be told there'd be at least a sixty minute wait for a table. Hellooooooo entrees at nearby sports bar Jake Melnick's.

Spicy buffalo wings US$10.95

We kick back with beers and plough through a creamy spinach and artichoke dip scooped up with thick and crunchy tortilla chips. There's a basket of spicy buffalo wings too, deliciously saucy, served with blue cheese dressing and celery sticks.

We finally get a table at Gino's East Pizzeria, one of the better known providers of Chicago-style pizzas and hugely popular with tourists. It's a cavernous two-level space with casual wooden furniture and walls that are covered in graffiti - they even provide you with Sharpies so you can add your own message.

Cheese and our famous sausage deep dish pizza US$17.70 small

It's a 45 minute wait for the deep dish pizza, arriving in a cast iron fry pan that's cut and served at the table.

Cheesy sausage goodness

We keep things simple, ordering the cheese and sausage deep dish pizza. The crust is thick but buttery like a biscuit, and it really is more like eating a pie or a tart than a pizza. The pork sausage comes in fat peppery chunks, hidden beneath a lake of tomato sauce and stretchy globules of melted cheese.

You couldn't eat many wedges of these but hey, you probably shouldn't either!

Gino's East fresh house salad US$5.50

And a token salad on the side keeps everything balanced. It's one of the healthiest ones we encounter on this trip too - free from an avalanche of mayonnaise, cheese or bacon.

If you're the type who battles with menu indecision, you'd best steer well clear of The Cheesecake Factory. There's a ludicrous number of options here, including 26 appetisers, 12 types of burgers and do I need to mention the 34 different cheesecakes they have for dessert?!

Blue cheese BLT burger US$11.95

It's sad but true. There's no affiliation between The Cheesecake Factory mentioned on The Big Bang Theory and the actual US chain of The Cheesecake Factory. But they do have insane portions for ridiculously cheap prices.

Cuban sandwich US$12.50 with sweet potato fries US$1 extra

Suze's blue cheese BLT burger boasts a hefty patty and although I manage to make it through my Cuban sandwich (slow roasted pork, ham, swiss cheese, pickles, mustard and mayonnaise), we still can't finish the tower of sweet potato fries between the three of us.

Fried chicken salad US$13.95

Lex's fried chicken salad is surely a misnomer, but if you like fried chicken smothered in grilled corn, glazed pecans and honey mustard then this one's for you. One the side is a mixed greens salad drenched in buttermilk black pepper dressing.

Ultimate red velvet cheesecake US$7.95

But really we'd come here primarily for dessert, and these photos don't really do justice to their size. They're skyscraper tall, adorned with extra squiggles of whipped cream. The white chocolate raspberry truffle cheesecake has a thick chocolatey base that tastes like Oreos, but our favourite is the ultimate red velvet cheesecake with layers of fluffy red velvet cake.

On a gorgeous Sunday morning we hit the Logan Square Farmers Market, filled with all the organic, gluten-free, nut-free and vegan goodies you could hope for. There are locals with shopping baskets, couples with dogs and plenty of people lying on the grass just soaking up the sun.

I went with the ginger passionfruit snow cone that was just the refreshment needed on a 33C day!

Kohl rabi

Chicago's iconic Cloud Gate aka The Bean in Millennium Park

We also stopped by the Millennium Park. The Cloud Gate sculpture by Indian-born British artist Anish Kapoor is such an amazing installation, inviting people to interact with it, as well as view their surroundings in a completely different perspective.

Suze opts for a side of house-smoked bacon with her eggs, country-style thick slices that are sweet and crisp.

Housemade maple cinnamon granola with almonds, yoghurt and pears US$8

After two weeks of fried chicken and barbecue meat, I go for the lighter option of housemade maple cinnamon granola. It's delicious enough to eat on its own, but I dutifully eat the yoghurt and fresh pear too.

Errmahgerd that butterscotch donut! I struggled to finish my ultimate red velvet cheesecake on my last cheesecake factory visit. Soooo much cream cheese lol Can I order the beef juicy, wet and soaked all at the same time??! HAHAHA!!!

- I love Man VS Food!- The savouries at Cheesecake factory look really good. And I always wonder how the boys on Big Bang Theory stay so slim seeing as they eat junk food every night- Snowcone with espresso and condensed milk - WANT!- The "heart attack" look DELICIOUS- I love Chemex coffee! I have one at home and often make a pot on the weekends.

I lived in Chicago for a few months and was bewildered by the deep dish pizza, their obsession with hot dogs (no ketchup or that makes you Californian I was told!) & why they would eat soggy bread... but by the end of my stint there, I was a convert!

But that aside... Aaaah! I didn't realise until now, but your first Cheesecake Factory cheesecakes aligned with my second visit's cheesecakes! Go us! Aaaaargh I want them all again now. And the snowcone. And the butterscotch bacon doughnut.

Wow, big wow! That was an epic food journey of incredible proportions and yes, I think I'm just that much hungrier now! As for which food I'd choose, it would a crime if I didn't say Buffalo wings and Red Velvet, wins me over, everytime! :)